‘Virtuoso’ Town Hall revival wins Victorian Premier’s Design Award
Kerstin Thompson Architects‘ (KTA) collaboration with Hume Borough Council on Broadmeadows Town Hall was awarded Best in Category for Architectural Design at the Victorian Premier’s Design Awards.
The category accepts entries for architecture, interior design, landscaping, and urban design. It focuses on the design and planning of buildings, interior and exterior spaces, with particular emphasis on the creation of space and the factors that influence our engagement with the public environment.
Historic elements such as distinctive steel and wood details have been preserved.
Image: Dan Preston
The Broadmeadows Town Hall brief required maintaining the cultural significance of the site while reviving the aesthetic quality and community relevance of the existing Town Hall.
KTA’s approach to renewal has been recognized for its sensitivity to the fabric of the building while simultaneously being able to lift the building to better meet the contemporary needs of the community.
“Kerstin Thompson was able to maintain [the building’s] greatness by modernizing and improving [its] performance without diminishing its ability to trigger memories of the past,” said Celina Clarke, Jury Chair of the Victorian Premier’s Design Awards. “It’s a virtuoso example of what can be achieved when outdated community builds are skillfully repurposed and improved, rather than simply replaced.”
KTA was careful to retain as much of the original two-tone brick facade, so intrinsic to the character of the room, in the redevelopment.
Where possible, the original two-tone masonry has been reused in the renewal.
Image: Dan Preston
Key historical elements like the grand staircase have been preserved, while a new hub has been added to the south of the hall to provide additional floor space. The civic character of City Hall has been preserved, while the new design incorporates a new level of flexibility and equipment to meet future needs and functions.
“Clever internal planning carefully considers each new element while the best of the existing fabric is respected and championed,” reads the jury citation.
Hume Town Council Major Projects Co-ordinator Dan O’Loughlin said: “Since its construction in the 1960s, Broadmeadows Town Hall has played a central role in the civic and social life of the community of Broadmeadows.
“The redevelopment expands on this heritage through adaptive reuse, transforming this culturally significant building into an iconic contemporary facility, tailored to meet the needs of Broadmeadows residents and businesses.
O’Loughlin said the renewal has ensured the Town Hall will retain its place in the social and economic matrix of the Broadmeadows community for years to come.
The renewal of Broadmeadows Town Hall by KTA has been selected from a shortlist of 15 finalists. The Springvale Community Hub (by Lyons, Rush Wright Associates and City of Greater Dandenong) and the ACMI Renewal project (by BKK Architects, Razorfish an ACMI) also received high praise from the jury.
The Victorian Premier’s Design Awards for 2021 have been announced as part of Melbourne Design Week 2022. Managed by Good Design Australia on behalf of the Victorian Government, this was the award’s 25th anniversary, recognizing achievements in design strategy , fashion design, architectural design and more.
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The full list of Architectural Design 2021 finalists, as well as winners and finalists in other categories, can be found on the Victorian Premier’s Design Awards website.